NFL 2024 Week 13 Prequel
Thanksgiving Thursday, November 25, 12:30pm
Chicago Bears at Detroit Lions (-10 1/2) — The Bears have lost five straight. The Lions have won nine straight and are in Super Bowl mode. This game could be over by halftime. The Lions offense is off the charts. Yes, great upsets happen on any given Sunday. Not this game. Not this Sunday. Expect a blowout. Lions cover
4pm
New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys (-3 1/2) — The Cowboys finally won a game, snapping their five game losing streak. The Giants are a mess, and Tommy “Cutlets” Devito is not the answer. The Giants have no offense. The Cowboys with Cooper Rush are nothing special, but the Giants are atrocious. Cowboys cover
8pm
Miami Dolphins at Green Bay Packers (-3) — The Packers are the better team and they are at home. The Dolphins are overmatched. Jordan Love has better receivers than Tua Tagovailoa and a revitalized running back in Josh Jacobs. Packers cover
Black Friday, November 26, 3pm
Las Vegas Raiders at Kansas City Chiefs (-12 1/2) — Last year on Christmas Day the Raiders went into Kansas City and smacked the Chiefs around. Yet this year the Raiders are a mess, having lost seven straight. Aidan O’Connell returns from injury as Gardner Minshew is out for the year. The Raiders have no offensive line and no running game. No, the spread is not too high. This game could be over by halftime. The Chiefs win close games, but hatred of the Raiders and revenge will make this one ugly. Chiefs cover
Sunday, November 28, 1pm
Indianapolis Colts (-2 1/2) at New England Patriots — The Colts are the better team but they are nothing special. Both teams can run the ball. Anthony Richardson is feast or famine depending on his health. Drake Maye had an ugly game last week but is slowly improving. Go with the home field. Upset special, Patriots win outright
Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals (-2 1/2) — The Bengals are simply not as good as in recent past years. The Steelers stumbled last week at Cleveland and should rebound. Home field rarely matters in any of these AFC North street fights. The Steelers are winning the Mike Tomlin way, with running and defense. Go with the better team angry after a loss. Upset special, Steelers win outright
Los Angeles Chargers (-1 1/2) at Atlanta Falcons — Both of these teams had preseason hype but are far from special. The Chargers have more overall talent. Justin Herbert and Kirk Cousins can both sling it. Jim Harbaugh will be angry coming off of a Harbowl loss to his big brother. Chargers cover
Seattle Seahawks (-2) at New York Jets — The Seahawks are inconsistent and the Jets are bad. A few weeks after firing their coach, they axed their general manager. Nothing is ever Aaron Rodgers’s fault, but for whatever reason this team has failed to gel. At home against an average Seattle team, this is the last chance for the Jets to show they are worth anything. Upset special, Jets win outright
Houston Texans (-5) at Jacksonville Jaguars — The Texans suffered a stunning loss at lowly Tennessee. Yet the Jaguars are just awful. A team with Doug Pederson and Trevor Lawrence should be better but for some reason just aren’t. Meanwhile, CJ Stroud has blossomed and Demeco Ryans has a good defense. The Texans will be ticked off and will rebound, but the spread is high for a road team against a desperate team. Texans win but fail to cover
Arizona Cardinals at Minnesota Vikings (-3 1/2) — Dennis Green coached both of these teams, but neither of these teams is who we thought they were. The Vikings have blown several big leads but hung on while the Cardinals missed a chance to create some distance atop their woeful division. The Vikings have a great air attack. Kyler Murray is exciting, but he has less help than Sam Darnold does. Justin Jefferson is simply ridiculous, a true playmaker. Vikings cover
Tennessee Titans at Washington Commanders (-5 1/2) — The Titans are horrendous but somehow won last week. The Commanders are good but suffered a thrilling but excruciating home loss to Dallas last week. The Commanders will rebound. Dan Quinn’s defense will beat up Will Levis, who even in victory was sacked a ton of times. Commanders cover
4pm
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-6) at Carolina Panthers — The Panthers have quietly improved in recent weeks, winning two and taking Kansas City to the final play before falling. The Buccaneers finally won again, but beating the Giants should not count. The Panthers are awful but they fight hard. The spread is too high for a road team given that the Panthers have been competitive as of late. They might even win this one. Buccaneers win but fail to cover
Los Angeles Rams (-3) at New Orleans Saints — Neither team is anything special but the coaching change seems to have revitalized the Saints. The Rams lost badly at home to a good Philadelphia team. Matthew Stafford has his weapons and the game is indoors. Rams cover
Philadelphia Eagles at Baltimore Ravens (-3) — These are two good quality football teams. The Ravens had a short week after smacking around the Chargers on Monday night. The Eagles blasted the Rams. The Eagles normally win close games, but the Ravens are a better team than what the Eagles are used to. Jalen Hurts and Lamar Jackson are both superstars, but Jackson has more weapons to throw to. This is one game to just take the home field. Ravens cover
8pm
San Francisco 49ers at Buffalo Bills (-7) — The 49ers have looked terrible all season and got obliterated at Green Bay last week. Now they are at a Buffalo team that ended Kansas City’s unbeaten season. The Bills are thinking Super Bowl. The 49ers for some reason have not put together a complete game all year. This will not be the week they do. The 49ers have enough talent to keep this close or get a garbage touchdown. Bills win but fail to cover
Monday, November 29, 8pm
Cleveland Browns at Denver Broncos (-5 1/2) — The Browns at home shocked Pittsburgh, which is their Super Bowl. Now they can have a letdown and return to being a bad team. Plus, the Broncos are a good team that are starting to gel at the right time. Bo Nix is improving and Sean Payton remains a wizard. The Broncos have a good defense. This game is a mismatch and will play out that way. Broncos cover